The Cullens & Co read the Twilight series
by Silverfeather222
Summary: While out shopping with Bella, Alice finds four books with a note from a mysterious SM. The note says to read the books with the Cullens, Charlie and Jacob. The books are called Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking dawn. The story takes place after Breaking Dawn, so Renesmee is there too.
1. Preface

**So… here's my newest story. I know that I'm a Harry Potter fan, but I've recently been obsessed with Twilight. And yes, I also know that I haven't finished any of my other stories, but I just couldn't resist writing this.**

**This is my new story. It's about the Cullens, Jacob and Charlie reading the twilight series (Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn). It takes place after Breaking Dawn, so Renesmee is there too :).**

**BPOV**

"Oh my gosh Bella!" Alice cried. "Look at that store over there, it has the cutest dress! It would look perfect on you!"

I rolled my eyes. Alice and I were shopping at the mall. I don't know why I said yes when she asked me. Probably because she can manage to convince me that I'd be a terrible person if I said no to her. Or maybe just because I'm obsessed with pleasing people.

"Alice, calm down," I said. "Lets go to the bookstore first, remember, you promised me."

Alice sighed, looking exasperated. "Fine." She pouted.

I was glad when we enterend the store. There were less people there than on the street, so that meant less stares. Even though I was a vampire, I still tried to avoid attention.

I looked around a bit, until I discovered a section with classics. My eyes automatically scanned the titles for my all-time favourite: '_Wuthering Heights.' _ Maybe I should buy a new copy…

"Bella." I turned around, to see Alice looking at me. She looked serious, nothing like the excited pixie she was a few minutes ago.

I raise my eyebrows. "What is it, Alice?"

"We need to go home, now. I'll tell you there," she said softly, so that only I, with my vampire hearing, could understand her.

"Okay," I said. It didn't escape my notice that Alice held a package under her arms that she hadn't had before. I wondered what was in there, but I didn't ask any questions because Alice would explain everything soon enough.

0OoO0

When Alice and I had arrived at the big Cullen mansion, Alice quickly openend the door and stormed in.

Everyone had heard her arrive, so they were in the living room (where Alice was) in an instant, using their vampire speed and hearing. I walked to Edward, who had been playing the piano for Renesmee. We sat down on the love-seat, and Renesmee climbed on my lap. Then we all looked at Alice expectantly.

She coughed, and looked at us all. "Please, just stay where you are. It's important. I need to call Charlie and Jacob. They have to be here too."

"Charlie?" I asked, surprised. What could Charlie have to do with it?

"Yes, Charlie needs to be here." Alice said. She then grabbed her phone and called Charlie first, and then Jacob.

"They'll be here in a few minutes." Alice said happily, although I could hear the nervous edge in her voice. "We can start then."

0OoO0

Charlie and Jacob arrived together, they had met each other on the way. They both looked bewildered and curious, just like the rest of us. Alice led them both to the living room, and they took place.

"So…" Alice began.

We all looked at her expectantly.

"Bella and I were at the mall, and I saw this awesome blue dress that would be just perfect for Bella, you know the kind of blue that you like so much, Ed-"

"Just get on with it, Alice." I growled.

Alice sighed. "Okay. So anyway, Bella wanted to go to the bookstore first, so I agreed, knowing she'd otherwise be complaining for the rest of the time."

I rolled my eyes. I really wished that Alice would just get to the point.

"When we arrived at the store, Bella immediately left to look for the classics, and left me all alone," She sighed dramatically. "I was looking around, it was really boring, when I suddenly found these."

She showed us the package that she had been holding earlier.

"There was a note in there, for me!" She said excitedly. "It said that we should read these four books together."

We all looked shocked, and I was really curious. I wanted to know why we had to read these books.

"Can we read the note?" Edward asked Alice.

Alice shrugged. "Fine."

**_Hello Alice Cullen,_**

**_The package that you are now holding in your hands, contains four books called Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn. _**

**_You should take them to your family, and read them, together with Jacob Black and Charlie Swan. _**

**_You may not like certain parts of the series, but do not stop reading. It is important that you read everything._**

**_Yours sincerely,_**

**_SM._**

"Okay. I guess that Twilight is the first book." I said after I had read the note with Edward and had passed it to Rosalie.

Alice nodded. "We might as well start now. Can I read?" She asked.

Everyone nodded, so Alice grabbed the first book, Twilight. There were two pale hands on the cover, holding a red apple.

"Preface," Alice read.

**I'd never given much thought to how I would die - **

"Well duh. Who'd be thinking about dying?" Emmett stated.

**though I'd had reason enough in the last few months - **

"Doesn't sound good." Jasper commented.

**but even if I had, I would not have imagined it like this.**

**I stared without breathing across the long room, into the dark eyes of the hunter, and he looked pleasantly back at me.**

**Surely it was a good way to die, in the place of someone else, someone I loved. Noble, even. That ought to count for something.**

"It does." Esme said. "It's a nice thought, if you know you can't escape death anymore."

**I knew that if I'd never gone to Forks, **

"Hey! Forks! That's where we live!" Emmett said happily.

"We all know, Emmett." Rosalie hissed. "Please don't point out the obvious."

"Excuse me, do you want me to continue or not?" Alice complained.

"Yeah, yeah. Continue, please."

**I wouldn't be facing death now. But, terrified as I was, I couldn't bring myself to regret the decision. When life offers you a dream so far beyond any of your expectations, it's not reasonable to grieve when it comes to an end.**

**The hunter smiled in a friendly way as he sauntered forward to kill me.**

"Well, that was… interesting." Carlisle said. "I wonder what this book is about."

"What's the next chapter called?" Renesmee asked.

"First sight." Alice read.


	2. Chapter one: First Sight

**Hey guys! I'm gonna try to update once a week- but I can't promise anything. It depends on lots of things, like how much schoolwork I have, or if I'm going on a trip. So lets say that I'm going to update as soon as possible - hopefully next week.**

**Disclaimer- If I owned this, this story wouldn't have been posted on .**

**Here's the new chapter - Enjoy!**

**FIRST SIGHT**

**Charlie POV**

"All right, lets start!." Renesmee said excitedly.

**My mother drove me to the airport with the windows rolled down. It was seventy-five degrees in Phoenix, the sky a perfect, cloudless blue. I was wearing my favorite shirt - sleeveless, white eyelet lace; I was wearing it as a farewell gesture. My carry-on item was a parka.**

"No." Bella gasped. "This isn't possible, it can't be true!"

I looked at my daughter, confused.

"What, mom?" My granddaughter, Renesmee asked.

Bella looked around at all of us. "This book might be about me, I mean, the main character is in Phoenix now, and moved to Forks. And I wore exactly the same shirt when I moved here."

Everyone gasped, including me. Could this book really be about Bella?

Carlisle is the first one to recover. "That would be a plausible explanation, I mean, why would we have to read it otherwise?"

Edward slowly nodded. "I think you're right, Carlisle. This book is about Bella."

I try not to growl when he kisses my daughter's forehead. I know that I should get used to them being together, but it still bothers me. I am interested in this book, though, and what Bella's thoughts are when she is in Forks.

"Awesome, it's about Bells!" The big one, Emmett I think his name was, cheered. "We get to know all her thoughts!"

Bella groaned. "This is going to be so embarrassing."

"Can I continue, please?" Alice asked, slightly irritated.

**In the Olympic Peninsula of northwest Washington State, a small town named Forks exists under a near-constant cover of clouds. It rains on this inconsequential town more than any other place in the United States of America.**

"Yep. That's why it's so great for us to live here." Jasper said.

I looked at him confused. Why would it be great for them to live here? I saw Bella looking worriedly at Edward. They whispered something to each other, but I couldn't hear what they said. Maybe it had something to do with their mysterious secret.

**It was from this town and its gloomy, omnipresent shade that my mother escaped with me when I was only a few months old. It was in this town that I'd been compelled to spend a month every summer until I was fourteen. That was the year I finally put my foot down; these past three summers, my dad, Charlie, vacationed with me in California for two weeks instead.**

I coughed and looked down, embarrassed. I don't want them to know too much about my privet life.****

**It was to Forks that I now exiled myself- an action that I took with great horror. I detested Forks. I loved Phoenix. I loved the sun and the blistering heat. I loved the vigorous, sprawling city.**

"What?" I yelled, confused. "I thought you wanted to come here!"

Bella smiled softly. "The book will probably explain it later, dad. I started to like it here soon enough, though." She said, while looking at Edward.

**"Bella," my mom said to me - the last of a thousand times - before I got on the plane. "You don't have to do this."**

**My mom looks like me, except with short hair and laugh lines. I felt a spasm of panic as I stared at her wide, childlike eyes. How could I leave my loving, erratic, harebrained mother to fend for herself? Of course she had Phil now, so the bills would probably get paid, there would be food in the refrigerator, gas in her car, and someone to call when she got lost, but still…**

"Wow, Bella. You sound more like the mother figure in your relationship than she does." Esme said wonderingly.

I nod. "Yeah, Renee was always very childlike." I smile sadly as I think about my ex-wife.****

**"I want to go," I lied. I'd always been a bad liar,**

"That's the understatement of the year," Emmett laughed. "You are a terrible liar, I don't know how anyone could believe you."

I silently agreed with him in my head, since Bella shot him a death glare.

**but I'd been saying this lie so frequently lately that it sounded almost convincing now.**

"Ah, that explains it." Emmett said.****

**"Tell Charlie I said hi."**

**"I will."**

**"I'll see you soon," she insisted. "You can come home whenever you want - I'll come right back as soon as you need me."**

**But I could see the sacrifice in her eyes behind the promise.**

**"Don't worry about me," I urged. "It'll be great. I love you, Mom."**

**She hugged me tightly for a minute, and then I got on the plane, and she was gone.**

**It's a four-hour flight from Phoenix to Seattle, another hour in a small plane up to Port Angeles, and then an hour drive back down to Forks. Flying doesn't bother me; the hour in the car with Charlie, though, I was a little worried about.**

"What?" I exclaimed. "Why would you be worried about sitting in a car with me?"

Bella looked down, probably embarrassed. To my surprise, she didn't blush- in fact, I hadn't seen her blush in a while.

**Charlie had really been fairly nice about the whole thing. He seemed genuinely pleased that I was coming to live with him for the first time with any degree of permanence. **

"Well of course I was pleased. My daughter that I'd only seen once a year was coming to live with me. Who wouldn't be pleased about that?" I commented.

Bella looked at me and smiled.

**He'd already gotten me registered for high school and was going to help me get a car.**

**But it was sure to be awkward with Charlie. Neither of us was what anyone would call verbose, and I didn't know what there was to say regardless. I knew he was more than a little confused by my decision - like my mother before me, I hadn't made a secret of my distaste for Forks.**

"Hmmm, that explains it. You probably were right." I admitted.****

**When I landed in Port Angeles, it was raining. I didn't see it as an omen- just unavoidable. I'd already said my goodbyes to the sun.**

"Wait- Alice, stop reading." Emmett looked at Bella like she was crazy. "Bella, why did you talk to the sun? It's not like it would've said anything back to you."

Bella looked at him, clearly confused. "What? I did't talk to the sun. What are you talking about Emmett?"

"Well, the book says that you've already said goodbye to the sun, so…"

He wasn't able to finish his sentence, since the blonde- what was her name, Rosalind?—pulled him down by his hair.

"Don't be so dumb, Emmett." She said.

I couldn't help but agree with her.****

**Charlie was waiting for me with the cruiser. This I was expecting, too. Charlie is Police Chief Swan to the good people of Forks. My primary motivation behind buying a car, despite the scarcity of my funds, was that I refused to be driven around town in a car with red and blue lights on top. Nothing slows down traffic like a cop.**

"That's right," Alice agreed. "Sorry, chief," she said, winking at me.

"No Alice, you aren't right," Edward said. "Nothing slows down traffic like Bella's old car." He looked teasingly at Bella, who mock-glared at him.****

**Charlie gave me an awkward, one-armed hug when I stumbled my way off the plane.**

"She stumbled, of course." Edward said lovingly.

Renesmee gave them a confused look. "Why would mum stumble? She never stumbles now!" She exclaimed.

I silently agree with her. Bella was very graceful now, I wondered why she'd suddenly changed so much.****

**"It's good to see you, Bells," he said, smiling as he automatically caught and steadied me.**

**"You haven't changed much. How's Renee?"**

**"Mom's fine. It's good to see you, too, Dad." I wasn't allowed to call him Charlie to his face.**

"Really? I don't remember saying anything like that, although I did prefer you calling me dad…" I trailed off, and Alice continued reading.****

**I had only a few bags. Most of my Arizona clothes were too permeable for Washington. My mom and I had pooled our resources to supplement my winter wardrobe, but it was still scanty. It all fit easily into the trunk of the cruiser.**

"WHAT?" This time, Alice was the one to interrupt the reading. "Bella, we need to go shopping, soon."

"Alice, remember that I have way more clothes now," Bella reminded her.

Alice sighed. "That's right, but we still need to go shopping.****

**"I found a good car for you, really cheap," he announced when we were strapped in.**

**"What kind of car?" I was suspicious of the way he said "good car for you" as opposed to just "good car."**

**"Well, it's a truck actually, a Chevy."**

"I hated that thing." Rosalind remarked.

**"Where did you find it?"**

**"Do you remember Billy Black down at La Push?" La Push is the tiny Indian reservation on the coast.**

"Hey, my dad!" Jacob said happily. "I wonder when I'll be mentioned."****

**"No."**

"What? You didn't remember my dad? I'm hurt Bella." Jacob said, while Edward and Emmett snickered.

**"He used to go fishing with us during the summer," Charlie prompted.**

**That would explain why I didn't remember him. I do a good job of blocking painful, unnecessary things from my memory.**

"What, going fishing with me and Billy was painful?" I said. I always thought that Bella liked fishing.****

**"He's in a wheelchair now," Charlie continued when I didn't respond, "so he can't drive anymore, and he offered to sell me his truck cheap."**

**"What year is it?" I could see from his change of expression that this was the question he was hoping I wouldn't ask.**

"That was true," I said.****

**"Well, Billy's done a lot of work on the engine - it's only a few years old, really."**

Rosalind raised her eyebrows at me. "Seriously, a few years, Charlie?"

"I have to agree with Rosalie on that. That thing was ancient." Edward said.

Wait a minute- I thought. Edward just called her Rosalie. That means that the blonde isn't called Rosalind. Oh well, I was close enough.****

**I hoped he didn't think so little of me as to believe I would give up that easily. "When did he buy it?"**

**"He bought it in 1984, I think."**

**"Did he buy it new?"**

**"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixties - or late fifties at the earliest," he admitted sheepishly.**

"Ew… gross." Rosalie said.****

**"Ch - Dad, I don't really know anything about cars. I wouldn't be able to fix it if anything went wrong, and I couldn't afford a mechanic…"**

"What, you didn't think about me? I'd fix your car for free!" Jacob pouted.

Bella sighed. "Jake, I didn't even know you back then."

"Oh, that's right." He said.****

**"Really, Bella, the thing runs great. They don't build them like that anymore."**

**The thing, I thought to myself... it had possibilities - as a nickname, at the very least.**

**"How cheap is cheap?" After all, that was the part I couldn't compromise on.**

**"Well, honey, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift." Charlie peeked sideways at me with a hopeful expression.**

**Wow. Free. "You didn't need to do that, Dad. I was going to buy myself a car."**

**"I don't mind. I want you to be happy here." He was looking ahead at the road when he said this. Charlie wasn't comfortable with expressing his emotions out loud. I inherited that from him. So I was looking straight ahead as I responded.**

**"That's really nice, Dad. Thanks. I really appreciate it." No need to add that my being happy in Forks is an impossibility. **

"So pessimistic, Bella." Emmett snickered.

"Well, I'm happy now," she said, while looking at Edward.

**He didn't need to suffer along with me. And I never looked a free truck in the mouth - or engine.**

**"Well, now, you're welcome," he mumbled, embarrassed by my thanks.**

**We exchanged a few more comments on the weather, which was wet, and that was pretty much it for conversation. We stared out the windows in silence.**

**It was beautiful, of course; I couldn't deny that. Everything was green: the trees, their trunks covered with moss, their branches hanging with a canopy of it, the ground covered with ferns. Even the air filtered down greenly through the leaves.**

**It was too green - an alien planet.**

"Oooohh…" Emmett said.

"No, Emmett. We aren't getting you an alien costume." Edward hissed.

Emmett pouted, while I frowned. How did Edward know what Emmett was thinking?

**Eventually we made it to Charlie's. He still lived in the small, two-bedroom house that he'd bought with my mother in the early days of their marriage. Those were the only kind of days their marriage had - the early ones. **

I coughed, embarrassed again, while I received sympathetic glances from Esme and Carlisle.

**There, parked on the street in front of the house that never changed, was my new - well, new to me - truck. It was a faded red color, with big, rounded fenders and a bulbous cab. To my intense surprise, I loved it. **

"I still don't understand how you could love a thing like that, Bella." Edward sighed.

**I didn't know if it would run, but I could see myself in it. Plus, it was one of those solid iron affairs that never gets damaged -the kind you see at the scene of an accident, paint unscratched, surrounded by the pieces of the foreign car it had destroyed.**

**"Wow, Dad, I love it! Thanks!" Now my horrific day tomorrow would be just that much less dreadful. I wouldn't be faced with the choice of either walking two miles in the rain to school or accepting a ride in the Chief's cruiser.**

"Seriously, what's wrong with my cruiser?" I exclaimed.

"It would attract way to much attention if I arrived at school in your cruiser, dad." Bella sighed.

Well, I guessed she was right.****

**"I'm glad you like it," Charlie said gruffly, embarrassed again.**

**It took only one trip to get all my stuff upstairs.**

Alice hissed.

**I got the west bedroom that faced out over the front yard. The room was familiar; it had been belonged to me since I was born. The wooden floor, the light blue walls, the peaked ceiling, the yellowed lace curtains around the window -these were all a part of my childhood. The only changes Charlie had ever made were switching the crib for a bed and adding a desk as I grew. The desk now held a secondhand computer, with the phone line for the modem stapled along the floor to the nearest phone jack. This was a stipulation from my mother, so that we could stay in touch easily. The rocking chair from my baby days was still in the corner.**

"I really liked that chair," Edward told Bella. Bella smiled back at him.

I really didn't want to know why Edward liked that chair.

**There was only one small bathroom at the top of the stairs, which I would have to share with Charlie. I was trying not to dwell too much on that fact.**

"Honestly, Bella. I tried to do that too." I commented.****

**One of the best things about Charlie is he doesn't hover. He left me alone to unpack and get settled, a feat that would have been altogether impossible for my mother. It was nice to be alone, not to have to smile and look pleased; a relief to stare dejectedly out the window at the sheeting rain and let just a few tears escape. I wasn't in the mood to go on a real crying jag. I would save that for bedtime, when I would have to think about the coming morning.**

"Aww, poor you, Bella. I never knew you hated it so much here." Esme exclaimed.

"I don't hate it anymore, Esme. I only used to, in the beginning." Bella explained.****

**Forks High School had a frightening total of only three hundred and fifty-seven - now fifty-eight - students; there were more than seven hundred people in my junior class alone back home. All of the kids here had grown up together - their grandparents had been toddlers together.**

**I would be the new girl from the big city, a curiosity, a freak.**

"No, we already were the freaks," Jasper joked.

**Maybe, if I looked like a girl from Phoenix should, I could work this to my advantage. But physically, I'd never fit in anywhere. I should be tan, sporty, blond - a volleyball player, or a cheerleader, perhaps - all the things that go with living in the valley of the sun.**

"Seriously, Bella. You are beautiful, when will you start realising that?" Edward whispered to my daughter. ****

**Instead, I was ivory-skinned, without even the excuse of blue eyes or red hair, despite the constant sunshine. I had always been slender, but soft somehow, obviously not an athlete; I didn't have the necessary hand-eye coordination to play sports without humiliating myself - and harming both myself and anyone else who stood too close.**

"True," Emmett and I said at the same time. Bella hit Emmett, but left me alone.

"I didn't mind you hurting Mike Newton," Edward grumbled.

"Jealous much?" Bella asked him. He just scowled.

Why would Edward be jealous of Mike Newton? I thought.****

**When I finished putting my clothes in the old pine dresser, I took my bag of bathroom necessities and went to the communal bathroom to clean myself up after the day of travel. I looked at my face in the mirror as I brushed through my tangled, damp hair. Maybe it was the light, but already I looked sallower, unhealthy. My skin could be pretty - it was very clear, almost translucent-looking- but it all depended on color. I had no color here.**

**Facing my pallid reflection in the mirror, I was forced to admit that I was lying to myself. It wasn't just physically that I'd never fit in. And if I couldn't find a niche in a school with three thousand people, what were my chances here?**

"Well, you had friends enough here. Although not all of them were —" Emmett began, but Bella cut him off, looking pointedly at me.

I always knew that they were hiding something from me.****

**I didn't relate well to people my age.**

"Well, we aren't exactly your —" Emmett began again, but someone interrupted him again. This time, it was Rosalie who did it.

"Seriously, Emmett. Please think before you say something." She said.

Emmett just grumbled, while I became even more suspicious. I really wanted to know what they were hiding from me.

**Maybe the truth was that I didn't relate well to people, period. Even my mother, who I was closer to than anyone else on the planet, was never in harmony with me, never on exactly the same page. Sometimes I wondered if I was seeing the same things through my eyes that the rest of the world was seeing through theirs. Maybe there was a glitch in my brain. **

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking too," Edward said thoughtfully.

"Hmm. But I like that glitch now." Bella stated, raising one of her eyebrows at him.

**But the cause didn't matter. All that mattered was the effect. And tomorrow would be just the beginning.**

**I didn't sleep well that night, even after I was done crying.**

"Bella, you were crying?" I asked in shock. I never knew she hated it so much.

Bella looked down. "I didn't like it here at first, dad. But trust me, it only was like that in the beginning."

I sighed with relief. I've always wanted my daughter to be happy.

**The constant whooshing of the rain and wind across the roof wouldn't fade into the background. I pulled the faded old quilt over my head, and later added the pillow, too. But I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, when the rain finally settled into a quieter drizzle.**

"I luckily got used to the rain soon enough." Bella commented.

I was glas about that. I wanted my daughter to be able to sleep well.****

**Thick fog was all I could see out my window in the morning, and I could feel the claustrophobia creeping up on me. You could never see the sky here; it was like a cage.**

**Breakfast with Charlie was a quiet event. He wished me good luck at school. I thanked him, knowing his hope was wasted. Good luck tended to avoid me. **

"Now that's an understatement," Edward commented.

Bella mock glared at him, and he kissed her head to apologize. They started kissing, and I intentionally looked away. There were some things that fathers don't need to see.

"Ewww, mom, dad. Stop it!" Renesmee said.

I looked up again, relieved. Alice coughed and started reading again.

**Charlie left first, off to the police station that was his wife and family. After he left, I sat at the old square oak table in one of the three unmatching chairs and examined his small kitchen, with its dark paneled walls, bright yellow cabinets, and white linoleum floor. Nothing was changed. My mother had painted the cabinets eighteen years ago in an attempt to bring some sunshine into the house. Over the small fireplace in the adjoining handkerchief-sized family room was a row of pictures. First a wedding picture of Charlie and my mom in Las Vegas, then one of the three of us in the hospital after I was born, taken by a helpful nurse, followed by the procession of my school pictures up to last year's. Those were embarrassing to look at - I would have to see what I could do to get Charlie to put them somewhere else, at least while I wasliving here.**

"Bella, can I see them?" Edward and Nessie asked at the same time. The looked at each other and laughed.

Bella's eyes grew wide, and shook her head. "Never. Those are way too embarrassing, like the book says."

Edward looked disappointed, and Nessie pouted. ****

**It was impossible, being in this house, not to realize that Charlie had never gotten over my mom. It made me uncomfortable.**

Seriously? Did Bella really have to think that? I thought. It frustrated me when everyone looked at me.

"Hey, I have Sue now, and I love her." I mumbled in embarrassment.****

**I didn't want to be too early to school, but I couldn't stay in the house anymore. I donned my jacket - which had the feel of a biohazard suit -and headed out into the rain.**

**It was just drizzling still, not enough to soak me through immediately as I reached for the house key that was always hidden under the eaves by the door, and locked up. The sloshing of my new waterproof boots was unnerving. I missed the normal crunch of gravel as I walked. I couldn't pause and admire my truck again as I wanted; I was in a hurry to get out of the misty wet that swirled around my head and clung to my hair under my hood.**

**Inside the truck, it was nice and dry. Either Billy or Charlie had obviously cleaned it up, but the tan upholstered seats still smelled faintly of tobacco, gasoline, and peppermint. **

"We did it together," I admitted.

**The engine started quickly, to my relief, but loudly, roaring to life and then idling at top volume. Well, a truck this old was bound to have a flaw. The antique radio worked, a plus that I hadn't expected.**

"I wouldn't have excepted it either," Rosalie remarked. She wrinkled her nose in disgust, while Bella glared at her.

**Finding the school wasn't difficult, though I'd never been there before. The school was, like most other things, just off the highway. It was not obvious that it was a school; only the sign, which declared it to be the Forks High School, made me stop. It looked like a collection of matching houses, built with maroon-colored bricks. There were so many trees and shrubs I couldn't see its size at first. Where was the feel of the institution? I wondered nostalgically. Where were the chain-link fences, the metal detectors?**

"Seriously? Did they have those in Phoenix?" Jasper asked incredulously.

Bella nodded. "Yeah, you know, just to check if anyone brought weapons or something like that to school. It's just for your own safety," she defended.****

**I parked in front of the first building, which had a small sign over the door reading front office. No one else was parked there, so I was sure it was off limits, but I decided I would get directions inside instead of circling around in the rain like an idiot. I stepped unwillingly out of the toasty truck cab and walked down a little stone path lined with dark hedges. I took a deep breath before opening the door. Inside, it was brightly lit, and warmer than I'd hoped. The office was small; a little waiting area with padded folding chairs, orange-flecked commercial carpet, notices and awards cluttering the walls, a big clock ticking loudly. Plants grew everywhere in large plastic pots, as if there wasn't enough greenery outside. The room was cut in half by a long counter, cluttered with wire baskets full of papers and brightly colored flyers taped to its front. There were three desks behind the counter, one of which was manned by a large, red-haired woman wearing glasses. She was wearing a purple t-shirt, which immediately made me feel overdressed.**

Emmett started laughing. "Ah, that's mrs Cope. Remember her, Eddie?"

Edward made a face at Emmett. "Yeah, I do. I really didn't like her. And by the way. Don't call me Eddie."

"Why didn't you like her, Edward?" I asked with interest.

"She has a crush on Edward," Rosalie laughed.

I raised my eyebrows. That was strange. "How you did know that?" I asked.

Edward coughed, and mumbled something. I really had the idea that they were hiding something from me.****

**The red-haired woman looked up. "Can I help you?"**

**"I'm Isabella Swan," I informed her, and saw the immediate awareness light her eyes. I was expected, a topic of gossip no doubt. Daughter of the Chief's flighty ex-wife, come home at last.**

I coughed. It had indeed been a topic of gossip.****

**"of course," she said. She dug through a precariously stacked pile of documents on her desk till she found the ones she was looking for. "I have your schedule right here, and a map of the school." She brought several sheets to the counter to show roe.**

"Hmph. Like she'd need a map. That school is tiny," Rosalie remarked. "Even the dumbest person on earth wouldn't get lost."

I silently agreed with her.****

**She went through my classes for me, highlighting the best route to each on the map, and gave me a slip to have each teacher sign, which I was to bring back at the end of the day. She smiled at me and hoped, like Charlie, that I would like it here in Forks. I smiled back as convincingly as I could.**

**When I went back out to my truck, other students were starting to arrive. I drove around the school, following the line of traffic. I was glad to see that most of the cars were older like mine, nothing flashy. At home I'd lived in one of the few lower-income neighbourhoods that were included in the Paradise Valley District. It was a common thing to see a new Mercedes or Porsche in the student lot. The nicest car here was a shiny Volvo, and it stood out. **

"Ah, my Volvo," Edward commented. "I still miss it."

I raised my eyebrows. "What happened to it?"

"Emmett and Rosalie… errmm… broke it… by doing something on the roof." Edward answered awkwardly.

I was getting more confused by the minute. What could Emmett and Rosalie have done to break the car? Maybe they had hammer throwing or something like that as a hobby.

**Still, I cut the engine as soon as I was in a spot, so that the thunderous volume wouldn't draw attention to me.**

**I looked at the map in the truck, trying to memorize it now; hopefully I wouldn't have to walk around with it stuck in front of my nose all day. I stuffed everything in my bag, slung the strap over my shoulder, and sucked in a huge breath. I can do this, I lied to myself feebly. No one was going to bite me. **

"I can't guarantee that," Jasper grinned.

Bella just rolled her eyes at him. "Haha, very funny," she said sarcastically.

I frowned again. This 'family' had a really strange sense of humor. Why would Jasper say such a thing?

**I finally exhaled and stepped out of the truck.**

**I kept my face pulled back into my hood as I walked to the sidewalk, crowded with teenagers. My plain black jacket didn't stand out, I noticed with relief.**

**Once I got around the cafeteria, building three was easy to spot. A large black "3" was painted on a white square on the east corner. I felt my breathing gradually creeping toward hyperventilation as I approached the door. I tried holding my breath as I followed two unisex raincoats through the door.**

"Ewww… unisex raincoats," Alice said, wrinkling her nose in disgust. Everyone just ignored her, so she continued reading.****

**The classroom was small. The people in front of me stopped just inside the door to hang up their coats on a long row of hooks. I copied them. They were two girls, one a porcelain-colored blonde, the other also pale, with light brown hair. At least my skin wouldn't be a standout here.**

"Yep. We already stood out, and our skin is way paler than your's was," Emmett commented.

Bella rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but I hadn't seen you yet, then, the book would probably have mentioned it if I had."

**I took the slip up to the teacher, a tall, balding man whose desk had a nameplate identifying him as Mr. Mason. He gawked at me when he saw my name - not an encouraging response - and of course I flushed tomato red. But at least he sent me to an empty desk at the back without introducing me to the class. It was harder for my new classmates to stare at me in the back, but somehow, they managed. I kept my eyes down on the reading list the teacher had given me. It was fairly basic: Bronte, Shakespeare, Chaucer, Faulkner. I'd already read everything.**

Edward sighed. "Of course she'd already read them,"

**That was comforting... and boring. I wondered if my mom would send me my folder of old essays, or if she would think that was cheating. I went through different arguments with her in my head while the teacher droned on.**

"Bella, that's a great idea!" Emmett exclaimed. He looked at Esme for permission.

"No, Emmett. You can't reuse you told essays. That'd be cheating."

I frowned again. Why would Emmett need his old essays? He'd already finished High School. This was really strange.****

**When the bell rang, a nasal buzzing sound, a gangly boy with skin problems and hair black as an oil slick leaned across the aisle to talk to me.**

"Eric Yorkie." Edward growled, and he gritted his teeth.

Bella raised an eyebrow. "I never knew you didn't like him. I thought you only disliked Mike Newton."

Edward shrugged. "I like him better than Newton, but still…" he trailed off, and didn't finish his sentence.

Alice started reading again.****

**"You're Isabella Swan, aren't you?" He looked like the overly helpful, chess club type.**

"Nerd." Someone commented.****

**"Bella," I corrected. Everyone within a three-seat radius turned to look at me.**

**"Where's your next class?" he asked.**

**I had to check in my bag. "Um, Government, with Jefferson, in building six."**

**There was nowhere to look without meeting curious eyes.**

**"I'm headed toward building four, I could show you the way..." Definitely over-helpful. "I'm Eric," he added.**

"Yep, I was right. It was Eric." Edward remarked.****

**I smiled tentatively. "Thanks."**

**We got our jackets and headed out into the rain, which had picked up. I could have sworn several people behind us were walking close enough to eavesdrop. I hoped I wasn't getting paranoid.**

**"So, this is a lot different than Phoenix, huh?" he asked.**

**"Very."**

**"It doesn't rain much there, does it?"**

**"Three or four times a year."**

**"Wow, what must that be like?" he wondered.**

**"Sunny," I told him.**

**"You don't look very tan."**

**"My mother is part albino."**

Some people snorted, and some started laughing.****

**He studied my face apprehensively, and I sighed. It looked like clouds and a sense of humor didn't mix. A few months of this and I'd forget how to use sarcasm.**

"You're right, Bella. Nobody ever laughs at my jokes anymore." Emmett whined.

"Well, that's because your jokes just aren't funny," Edward said. "And Emmett, nobody ever did laugh at your jokes, so that 'anymore' wasn't needed."

Emmett pouted.

**We walked back around the cafeteria, to the south buildings by the gym. Eric walked me right to the door, though it was clearly marked.**

**"Well, good luck," he said as I touched the handle. "Maybe we'll have some other classes together." He sounded hopeful.**

**I smiled at him vaguely and went inside.**

"Bella, you shouldn't lead them on," Edward said. His voice sounded slightly irritated, although I doubted that it was because of her. "They'll only be hopeful."

"Sorry, I was just trying to be nice," Bella defended. "It was my first day, I wanted people to like me."

"Well, some people liked you a bit _too_ much." Edward grumbled.

**The rest of the morning passed in about the same fashion. My Trigonometry teacher, Mr. Varner, who I would have hated anyway just because of the subject he taught, was the only one who made me stand in front of the class and introduce myself. I stammered, blushed, and tripped over my own boots on the way to my seat.**

"Of course she tripped," I laughed.

Bella glared at me. "Not funny dad. That was really embarrassing."

**After two classes, I started to recognize several of the faces in each class. There was always someone braver than the others who would introduce themselves and ask me questions about how I was liking Forks. I tried to be diplomatic, but mostly I just lied a lot. At least I never needed the map.**

"I told you that map was useless," someone, probably Rosalie, said.

Bella nodded. "Yeah, it was."****

**One girl sat next to me in both Trig and Spanish, and she walked with me to the cafeteria for lunch. She was tiny, several inches shorter than my five feet four inches, but her wildly curly dark hair made up a lot of the difference between our heights. I couldn't remember her name, so I smiled and nodded as she prattled about teachers and classes. I didn't try to keep up.**

"That sounds like Jessica Stanley." Alice said knowingly. "The description suits her."

"I never liked her that much," Edward commented. "Her brain was—"

He was cut off by Rosalie, who pointedly looked my way.

Seriously, what were these people hiding from me?****

**We sat at the end of a full table with several of her friends, who she introduced to me. I forgot all their names as soon as she spoke them. They seemed impressed by her bravery in speaking to me. The boy from English, Eric, waved at me from across the room.**

**It was there, sitting in the lunchroom, trying to make conversation with seven curious strangers, that I first saw them.**

"Ooooh, that must be us!" Alice squealed, looking excited. "I wonder what you're going to think, Bella."

"Yes, I'd like to know that too," Edward told Bella softly.

Bella looked down. "This is going to be so embarrassing!" she exclaimed.****

**They were sitting in the corner of the cafeteria, as far away from where I sat as possible in the long room. There were five of them. They weren't talking, and they weren't eating, though they each had a tray of untouched food in front of them. **

"You guys need to work on that," Carlisle commented. "Bella noticed it from all the way across the room."

Edward rolled his eyes. "Yes, but Bella was way more observant than other humans." He remarked.

I didn't ask any questions, because they probably wouldn't be answered.

Alice coughed and continued reading.

**They weren't gawking at me, unlike most of the other students, so it was safe to stare at them without fear of meeting an excessively interested pair of eyes. But it was none of these things that caught, and held, my attention.**

**They didn't look anything alike. Of the three boys, one was big - muscled like a serious weight lifter, with dark, curly hair.**

"That's me!" Emmett said happily. "Yeah, I'm a weight lifter." He flexed his muscles.

"No you aren't, Emmett," Rosalie commented. "You just look like one."

"Well, that's what I meant," Emmett replied.

"Then say it," Rosalie snapped, and rolled her eyes.

**Another was taller, leaner, but still muscular, and honey blond. **

"Me." Jasper stated simply.

**The last was lanky, less bulky, with untidy, bronze-colored hair. He was more boyish than the others, who looked like they could be in college, or even teachers here rather than students.**

"And that's me." Edward said.

"Ooohh, I have an idea." Emmett exclaimed.

I looked at him warily. Emmett was a little strange, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to know his 'idea'.

"What's his idea, Edward?" Bella asked him.

"He wants to become a teacher," Edward said scornfully.

How would Edward know what Emmett's idea was?

"Oh, please don't become a teacher, Emmett. Nobody would want you as a teacher, it'd be a nightmare for everyone!" Alice laughed.

I couldn't help but agree with her.****

**The girls were opposites. The tall one was statuesque. She had a beautiful figure, the kind you saw on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, the kind that made every girl around her take a hit on her self-esteem just by being in the same room. Her hair was golden, gently waving to the middle of her back. **

Rosalie smiled at Bella. "Oooh, thank you, Bella, that was really nice."

Bella smiled back at her. "Well, it is true, Rose."

**The short girl was pixie like, thin in the extreme, with small features. Her hair was a deep black, cropped short and pointing in every direction.**

"Wow, Bella. I'm a pixie." Alice said sarcastically.

"Well, sis. You really do look like one," Edward commented, while the rest (including me) nodded in agreement.

"Oh, well. I guess that I _am_ extremely pixie-like."

**And yet, they were all exactly alike. Every one of them was chalky pale, the palest of all the students living in this sunless town. Paler than me, the albino. They all had very dark eyes despite the range in hair tones. They also had dark shadows under those eyes - purplish, bruiselike shadows. As if they were all suffering from a sleepless night, or almost done recovering from a broken nose. Though their noses, all their features, were straight, perfect, angular.**

"Wow, Bella. You are so observant. No wonder you found out about our secret," Esme said, while Carlisle nodded.

I couldn't help but wonder what their secret was.****

**But all this is not why I couldn't look away.**

**I stared because their faces, so different, so similar, were all devastatingly, inhumanly beautiful. They were faces you never expected to see except perhaps on the airbrushed pages of a fashion magazine. Or painted by an old master as the face of an angel. It was hard to decide who was the most beautiful - maybe the perfect blond girl, or the bronze-haired boy.**

"Of course Edward is the most beautiful," Jasper remarked, while Edward smiled at Bella lovingly.

"Bella, I'm hurt! I wasn't even considered as the most beautiful one?" Emmett pouted.

Bella rolled her eyes at him.

This kid really needs to grow up, I thought.****

**They were all looking away - away from each other, away from the other students, away from anything in particular as far as I could tell. As I watched, the small girl rose with her tray -unopened soda, unbitten apple - and walked away with a quick, graceful lope that belonged on a runway.**

**I watched, amazed at her lithe dancer's step, till she dumped her tray and glided through the back door, faster than I would have thought possible. My eyes darted back to the others, who sat unchanging.**

"Alice!" Someone hissed.

"You guys will really need to work on that," Carlisle told them.

**"Who are they?" I asked the girl from my Spanish class, whose name I'd forgotten.**

**As she looked up to see who I meant - though already knowing, probably, from my tone - suddenly he looked at her, the thinner one, the boyish one, the youngest, perhaps. He looked at my neighbor for just a fraction of a second, and then his dark eyes flickered to mine.**

"I probably heard her shrieking my name, in her—" Edward began, but he was interrupted by Bella, who stomped on his foot.

**He looked away quickly, more quickly than I could, though in a flush of embarrassment I dropped my eyes at once. In that brief flash of a glance, his face held nothing of interest - it was as if she had called his name, and he'd looked up in involuntary response, already having decided not to answer.**

**My neighbor giggled in embarrassment, looking at the table like I did.**

**"That's Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The one who left was Alice Cullen; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his wife." She said this under her breath.**

**I glanced sideways at the beautiful boy, who was looking at his tray now,picking a bagel to pieces with long, pale fingers. His mouth was moving very quickly, his perfect lips barely opening. The other three still looked away, and yet I felt he was speaking quietly to them.**

**Strange, unpopular names, I thought. The kinds of names grandparents had. But maybe that was in vogue here - small town names? I finally remembered that my neighbor was called Jessica, a perfectly common name. There were two girls named Jessica in my History class back home.**

"I knew it was Jessica!" Someone commented. "The description fit her perfectly."****

**"They are... very nice-looking." I struggled with the conspicuous understatement.**

**"Yes!" Jessica agreed with another giggle. "They're all together though - Emmett and Rosalie, and Jasper and Alice, I mean. And they live together." Her voice held all the shock and condemnation of the small town, I thought critically. But, if I was being honest, I had to admit that even in Phoenix, it would cause gossip.**

Bella nodded. "Yep, it definitely would."****

**"Which ones are the Cullens?" I asked. "They don't look related..."**

**"Oh, they're not. Dr. Cullen is really young, in his twenties or early thirties. They're all adopted. The Hales are brother and sister, twins - the blondes - and they're foster children."**

**"They look a little old for foster children."**

**"They are now, Jasper and Rosalie are both eighteen, but they've been with Mrs. Cullen since they were eight. She's their aunt or something like that."**

**"That's really kind of nice - for them to take care of all those kids like that, when they're so young and everything."**

"Oh, Bella. You have such a nice, friendly mind," Esme sighed.****

**"I guess so," Jessica admitted reluctantly, and I got the impression that she didn't like the doctor and his wife for some reason. With the glances she was throwing at their adopted children, I would presume the reason was jealousy. "I think that Mrs. Cullen can't have any kids, though," she added, as if that lessened their kindness.**

Esme looked down sadly, as Carlisle hugged her.

"What a horrible girl," I said, and everyone nodded in agreement.****

**Throughout all this conversation, my eyes flickered again and again to the table where the strange family sat. They continued to look at the walls and not eat.**

"Guys, don't do that the next time." Carlisle said worriedly. "We don't want someone finding out."

I wondered when I would put the pieces together, and discover their 'secret'.

**"Have they always lived in Forks?" I asked. Surely I would have noticed them on one of my summers here.**

**"No," she said in a voice that implied it should be obvious, even to a new arrival like me. "They just moved down two years ago from somewhere in Alaska."**

**I felt a surge of pity, and relief. Pity because, as beautiful as they were, they were outsiders, clearly not accepted. Relief that I wasn't the only newcomer here, and certainly not the most interesting by any standard.**

**As I examined them, the youngest, one of the Cullens, looked up and met my gaze, this time with evident curiosity in his expression. As I looked swiftly away, it seemed to me that his glance held some kind of unmet expectation.**

"That's because I couldn't read your mind, love." Edward whispered to Bella, but I still could hear him.

"WHAT?" I exclaimed. "You can read minds?"

Rosalie hissed, and looked furious.

Edward coughed, and looked away. "You'll probably find out more in the books," he said.

Wow, this is so weird, I thought. Was Edward's mind-reading their secret? I wondered if there was more to it. I had the feeling there was. Bella obviously knew about it.****

**"Which one is the boy with the reddish brown hair?" I asked. I peeked at him from the corner of my eye, and he was still staring at me, but not gawking like the other students had today - he had a slightly frustrated expression. I looked down again.**

**"That's Edward. He's gorgeous, of course, but don't waste your time. He doesn't date. Apparently none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him." She sniffed, a clear case of sour grapes. I wondered when he'd turned her down.**

Edward coughed. "Yes, I had."

Emmett snickered. "Her reaction was really funny."****

**I bit my lip to hide my smile. Then I glanced at him again. His face was turned away, but I thought his cheek appeared lifted, as if he were smiling, too.**

"I was."****

**After a few more minutes, the four of them left the table together. They all were noticeably graceful - even the big, brawny one. It was unsettling to watch. The one named Edward didn't look at me again.**

**I sat at the table with Jessica and her friends longer than I would have if I'd been sitting alone. I was anxious not to be late for class on my first day. One of my new acquaintances, who considerately reminded me that her name was Angela, had Biology II with me the next hour. We walked to class together in silence. She was shy, too.**

"I liked her," Edward said. "She had a nice, open mind. Positive about everything."

"She was really nice, I miss her." Bella sighed.****

**When we entered the classroom, Angela went to sit at a black-topped lab table exactly like the ones I was used to. She already had a neighbor. In fact, all the tables were filled but one. Next to the center aisle, I recognized Edward Cullen by his unusual hair, sitting next to that single open seat.**

"Oh no," Edward growled.

"What?" Bella asked him.

"Remember the first time we met?"

"Oh," Bella looked at him worriedly. "I remember."****

**As I walked down the aisle to introduce myself to the teacher and get my slip signed, I was watching him surreptitiously. Just as I passed, he suddenly went rigid in his seat. He stared at me again, meeting my eyes with the strangest expression on his face - it was hostile, furious. **

"Seriously? What's you problem?" I asked him. Why would he look at Bella like that? It's not like she'd done anything wrong, I thought.

**I looked away quickly, shocked, going red again. I stumbled over a book in the walkway and had to catch myself on the edge of a table. The girl sitting there giggled.**

**I'd noticed that his eyes were black - coal black.**

"Oh no, you're being observant again," Jasper commented.****

**Mr. Banner signed my slip and handed me a book with no nonsense about introductions. I could tell we were going to get along. Of course, he had no choice but to send me to the one open seat in the middle of the room. I kept my eyes down as I went to sit by him, bewildered by the antagonistic stare he'd given me.**

**I didn't look up as I set my book on the table and took my seat, but I saw his posture change from the corner of my eye. He was leaning away from me, sitting on the extreme edge of his chair and averting his face like he smelled something bad. Inconspicuously, I sniffed my hair. It smelled like strawberries, the scent of my favorite shampoo. It seemed an innocent enough odor. I let my hair fall over my right shoulder, making a dark curtain between us, and tried to pay attention to the teacher.**

**Unfortunately the lecture was on cellular anatomy, something I'd already studied. I took notes carefully anyway, always looking down.**

**I couldn't stop myself from peeking occasionally through the screen of my hair at the strange boy next to me. During the whole class, he never relaxed his stiff position on the edge of his chair, sitting as far from me as possible. I could see his hand on his left leg was clenched into a fist, tendons standing out under his pale skin. **

"Bella, I'm so sorry," he said.

Bella rolled her eyes. "I already forgave you a long time ago, Edward. Don't bother with apologising all the time."

**This, too, he never relaxed. He had the long sleeves of his white shirt pushed up to his elbows, and his forearm was surprisingly hard and muscular beneath his light skin. He wasn't nearly as slight as he'd looked next to his burly brother.**

**The class seemed to drag on longer than the others. Was it because the day was finally coming to a close, or because I was waiting for his tight fist to loosen? It never did; he continued to sit so still it looked like he wasn't breathing. What was wrong with him? Was this his normal behavior? I questioned my judgment on Jessica's bitterness at lunch today. Maybe she was not as resentful as I'd thought.**

**It couldn't have anything to do with me. He didn't know me from Eve.**

**I peeked up at him one more time, and regretted it. He was glaring down at me again, his black eyes full of revulsion. As I flinched away from him, shrinking against my chair, the phrase if looks could kill suddenly ran through my mind.**

"I really am sorry, Bella," Edward apoligized.

"Edward, shut up." Bella snapped.

"Why were you so mean back then, Dad?" Renesmee asked. I wondered the same thing.

"The book will explain better than I can right now," Edward told her.

**At that moment, the bell rang loudly, making me jump, and Edward Cullen was out of his seat. Fluidly he rose - he was much taller than I'd thought - his back to me, and he was out the door before anyone else was out of their seat.**

"Edward!" Esme exclaimed, "you should've been careful."****

**I sat frozen in my seat, staring blankly after him. He was so mean. It wasn't fair. I began gathering up my things slowly, trying to block the anger that filled me, for fear my eyes would tear up. For some reason, my temper was hardwired to my tear ducts. I usually cried when I was angry, a humiliating tendency.**

**"Aren't you Isabella Swan?" a male voice asked.**

**I looked up to see a cute, baby-faced boy, his pale blond hair carefully gelled into orderly spikes, smiling at me in a friendly way. He obviously didn't think I smelled bad.**

"Mike Newton," Edward growled. "Don't like that kid."

"That's an understatement," Alice giggled.****

**"Bella," I corrected him, with a smile.**

**"I'm Mike."**

**"Hi, Mike."**

**"Do you need any help finding your next class?"**

**"I'm headed to the gym, actually. I think I can find it."**

**"That's my next class, too." He seemed thrilled, though it wasn't that big of a coincidence in a school this small.**

**We walked to class together; he was a chatterer - he supplied most of the conversation, which made it easy for me. He'd lived in California till he was ten, so he knew how I felt about the sun. It turned out he was in my English class also. He was the nicest person I'd met today.**

"Oh, really?" Edward growled.

"Well, the only other person she really talked to was Jessica." Alice commented. "And Jessica is terrible, so that might explain something."

"Thanks, Alice." Bella said, "and I also met Edward, but you weren't…"

"I'm sorry, Bella." Edward said again.

"Seriously, Edward. I know, so will you please stop repeating that?"

Edward nodded solemnly.****

**But as we were entering the gym, he asked, "So, did you stab Edward Cullen with a pencil or what? I've never seen him act like that."**

**I cringed. So I wasn't the only one who had noticed. And, apparently, that wasn't Edward Cullen's usual behavior. I decided to play dumb.**

**"Was that the boy I sat next to in Biology?" I asked artlessly.**

**"Yes," he said. "He looked like he was in pain or something."**

**"I don't know," I responded. "I never spoke to him."**

**"He's a weird guy." Mike lingered by me instead of heading to the dressing room. "If I were lucky enough to sit by you, I would have talked to you."**

Edward snarled. "I really hate Mike Newton."****

**I smiled at him before walking through the girls' locker room door. He was friendly and clearly admiring. But it wasn't enough to ease my irritation.**

**The Gym teacher, Coach Clapp, found me a uniform but didn't make me dress down for today's class. At home, only two years of P.E. were required. Here, P.E. was mandatory all four years. Forks was literally my personal hell on Earth.**

"Bella, I'd love to see you in P.E.," Emmet laughed.

"That's too bad, Emmett. I'm not clumsy anymore." Bella beamed.****

**I watched four volleyball games running simultaneously. Remembering how many injuries I had sustained - and inflicted - playing volleyball, I felt faintly nauseated.**

Someone— probably Emmett— started laughing.****

**The final bell rang at last. I walked slowly to the office to return my paperwork. The rain had drifted away, but the wind was strong, and colder. I wrapped my arms around myself.**

**When I walked into the warm office, I almost turned around and walked back out.**

"Oh no," Bella and Edward said at the same time, and looked at each other.

**Edward Cullen stood at the desk in front of me. I recognized again that tousled bronze hair. He didn't appear to notice the sound of my entrance. I stood pressed against the back wall, waiting for the receptionist to be free.**

**He was arguing with her in a low, attractive voice. **

"My voice is attractive?" Edward asked, raising an eyebrow.

Bella looked down and smiled. Again, I was surprised that she didn't blush.

**I quickly picked up the gist of the argument. He was trying to trade from sixth-hour Biology to another time - any other time.**

"Seriously, dad. What's mum done wrong?" Renesmee exclaimed.

"She didn't do anything, Renesmee. Just wait, the book will explain."****

**I just couldn't believe that this was about me. It had to be something else, something that happened before I entered the Biology room. The look on his face must have been about another aggravation entirely. It was impossible that this stranger could take such a sudden, intense dislike to me.**

**The door opened again, and the cold wind suddenly gusted through the room, rustling the papers on the desk, swirling my hair around my face. **

"Oh, that must have been terrible, Edward." Emmett commented. "Just smelling that woman already had me running to her."

"What woman?" I asked Emmet curiously.

Emmett looked down awkwardly. "Erm, my err- ex girlfriend."

"Oh really, Emmett?" Rosalie asked jealously. "Your ex?"

Emmett shrank in his chair, while Rosalie looked angry. "And how come I don't know anything about you having an ex-girlfriend?"

Emmett whispered something in Rosalie's ear, and she seems to calm down a bit.

**The girl who came in merely stepped to the desk, placed a note in the wire basket, and walked out again. But Edward Cullen's back stiffened, and he turned slowly to glare at me - his face was absurdly handsome - **

Edward beamed.

"Really, Bella. His ego will get even bigger than it already is if you keep describing him like that." Alice exclaimed.

"Sorry, Alice. I can't do anything about it now. Everything in this book already happened."

**with piercing, hate-filled eyes. For an instant, I felt a thrill of genuine fear, raising the hair on my arms. The look only lasted a second, but it chilled me more than the freezing wind. He turned back to the receptionist.**

**"Never mind, then," he said hastily in a voice like velvet. "I can see that it's impossible. Thank you so much for your help." And he turned on his heel without another look at me, and disappeared out the door.**

**I went meekly to the desk, my face white for once instead of red, and handed her the signed slip.**

**"How did your first day go, dear?" the receptionist asked maternally.**

**"Fine," I lied, my voice weak. She didn't look convinced.**

**When I got to the truck, it was almost the last car in the lot. It seemed like a haven, already the closest thing to home I had in this damp green hole. I sat inside for a while, just staring out the windshield blankly. But soon I was cold enough to need the heater, so I turned the key and the engine roared to life. I headed back to Charlie's house, fighting tears the whole way there.**

"Oh, Bella. You were so unhappy, I hate that." Esme said sadly.

"Yeah, Bells. I really thought you wanted to come here," I commented. I was a little disappointed that my daughter hadn't happy when she lived with me.

"Seriously, dad and Esme. I already told you that I'm going to love it here." Bella told us.

That made me a little happier.

"Okay guys, that was the end of the first chapter," Alice said, "who wants to read next?"

Emmett volunteered. "I will," he said.


End file.
